Halloween Recipes

If Fall had a flavor, it would be butternut squash. I know pumpkins are the symbol of Halloween, and sweet potatoes are a staple of Thanksgiving meals, but to me, nothing compares to the earthy sweetness and versatility of butternut squash. It works perfectly in salads, soups, side dishes, and, in the case of this risotto, as a main course.

To prepare this dish, I just diced and roasted some butternut squash and mixed it with a pot of risotto I infused with saffron. It's a simple, no frills preparation that really highlights the flavor and texture of the butternut squash.

It's already the end of the summer and I've been making every effort to get the best use out of the leftover mint and basil in my herb garden. With the basil, I've made a lot of pesto that I store in the freezer for the winter. There isn't enough left for an additional sauce, and I've always wanted to try a basil infused drink, so today I made a basil lemonade, basil limeade, to be more precise. Sweet basil can be a bit subtle, so I wanted to pair it with another herb to give the drink some kick.

Mint immediately came to mind. I've made drinks all summer using the different kinds of mint we have, including spearmint, peppermint, Vietnamese mint, and apple-mint. I still, however, have a lot of leftover chocolate mint in the garden. Lulu planted it for me a few years ago and it's been growing literally like weeds. It's not as strong as the other mint varieties, so it complements the basil in the limeade I made today without overpowering it. It may sound odd, but it's a really fun, beautiful and delicious drink.

I wish I had tooken the main picture but it is not mine. It was taken by a brilliant photographer named Ken Phuong. He's currently shooting with a team of photographers in the Bay Area.

Thumbprint cookies are my little munchkin's favorite sweet treats. I took the girls to our neighborhood park this afternoon and I brought along a box filled with the fun-looking thumbprint-shaped sablé cookies. The other fun thing about the cookies is that it's easy to mix and match the flavors and add fun colors.

I have flavored these cookies with cardamom, star anise seeds, mango and even durian! Today I made a combination of pandan and dark chocolate with a fancy little touch of vanilla.

Needless to say, everyone was very tired and hungry after jumping up and down on the monkey bars and on the swings. All the cookies were gone, so it's a good thing I took pictures beforehand so that I can share them with you.

Brioche is a French bread made out of eggs and butter. I remember every morning getting a brioche from the neighborhood bakery when I was a student in Paris. It tastes very buttery, slightly sweet and it has a fluffy texture.

I made some pizza today and I had some dry active yeast left. We got some Asian powdered coconut candies from the Asian market and I had a few knick-knacks like pandan paste from the pantry. I haven't baked in a while so I decided to make something original and give a twist to the traditional brioche.

No one can argue with the fact that American cookies are the best. When I lived in Paris and came to the US, I kept bringing a ton of American cookies home to my friends and relatives. Cookies are always a nice treat no matter the age of the cookie monster or the occasion being celebrated. We thought Santa would appreciate and taste some of our homemade cookies with an exotic twist (pandan extract) for a change.

Today is Christmas Eve and the girls decided we would leave some milk and cookies for Santa tonight. My little munchkin thinks she'll get more presents this way.